Milwaukee Noir

By Shauna Singh Baldwin, James E. Causey, Christi Clancy and 11 more

Derrick Harriell has received the Robert L. Fish Memorial Award for his story, "There's a Riot Goin' On," presented by the Mystery Writers of America!

Jennifer Morales's story "Cousins" has been named an Honorable Mention for the Zona Gale Short Fiction Award, presented by the Council for Wisconsin Writers.

Milwaukee Noir is a Boswell Book Company best seller: #1 Paperback Fiction Bestseller for the week ending May 25, 2019, and a #2 Paperback Fiction Bestseller for the week ending May 4, 2019!

"Luxuriate in the seedy, wallow in the angry and shiver at the horrors that surely await you around the corner...The sheer localness of Milwaukee Noir is superb, and the seediness of many characters here would qualify them for membership in a Tom Waits song."
--Milwuakee Journal Sentinel

"Fourteen fictional tales of people behaving badly in the city and the 'burbs, including top-shelf writers Valerie Laken, Jane Hamilton, Larry Watson and Nick Petrie."
--Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, included in Summer Reading 2019; Editor's Pick

"In Milwaukee Noir, among the latest titles in Akashic Books' Noir series, 14 writers who've lived here offer a sinister tour of Brew City's radically diverse neighborhoods...Many of these pieces...work effectively not only as atmospheric fiction but also as influential social commentary."
--Shepherd Express

"Akashic's distinctive series of crime fiction anthologies arrives in Brewtown. The fourteen contributors include familiar Wisconsin writers Valerie Laken, Jennifer Morales, Jane Hamilton, Larry Watson, Nick Petrie and my Journal Sentinel colleague James E. Causey. Like other volumes in this series, Milwaukee Noir foregrounds specific locations: for example, Watson's story has a Yankee Hill setting, and Morales' is set in the Silver City neighborhood."
--Milwaukee Journal-Sentinal

Akashic Books continues its award-winning series of original noir anthologies, launched in 2004 with Brooklyn Noir. Each book comprises all new stories, each one set in a distinct neighborhood or location within the respective city.

Brand-new stories from: Jane Hamilton, Reed Farrel Coleman, Valerie Laken, Matthew J. Prigge, Shauna Singh Baldwin, Vida Cross, Larry Watson, Frank Wheeler Jr., Derrick Harriell, Christi Clancy, James E. Causey, Mary Thorson, Nick Petrie, and Jennifer Morales.

From the introduction by Tim Hennessy:

Presently, Milwaukee is going through a renaissance--abandoned factories being converted to condos, craft breweries and distilleries pushing out corner taverns--yet at the same time it is among the most segregated and impoverished big cities in the country. The gentrification of neighborhoods outside of downtown bear the impact of twentieth-century redlining efforts, forcing residents out due to housing demand, adding fuel to the affordable-housing crisis. Such an environment and atmosphere make excellent fodder for noir fiction...

The book you're holding is the first of its kind--a short fiction collection about Milwaukee, by writers who've experienced life here. The crime/noir genre at its best can be one of the purest forms of social commentary. I've gathered contributors who can tell not just a fine story, but who can write about the struggles and resilience of the people who live here...I'm honored to compile a body of work that represents what I love, and fear, about Milwaukee. I love my city's lack of pretension; its stubbornness and pride in the unpolished corners. I fear that my city faces an uncertain future--that as it becomes more divided it may pushes our best and brightest to find somewhere else to shine.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Akashic Books
• Release date: May 7, 2019
• ISBN: 9781617757211

Shauna Singh Baldwin

Shauna Singh Baldwin’s first novel, What the Body Remembers, was published in 1999 by Knopf Canada, Transworld UK, Doubleday USA, and (as an audiobook) by Goose Lane Editions. It received the 2000 Commonwealth Writer's Prize for Best Book (Canada-Caribbean region) and has been translated into fourteen languages. Her second novel The Tiger Claw was a finalist for Canada's Giller Prize 2004. Shauna is the author of English Lessons and Other Stories and coauthor of A Foreign Visitor’s Survival Guide to America. Her awards include the 1995 Writer’s Union of Canada Award for short prose and the 1997 Canadian Literary Award. English Lessons received the 1996 Friends of American Writers Award. A former radio producer and ecommerce consultant, her fiction and poems are widely published in literary magazines and anthologies in the US, Canada, and India. She has served on several juries and teaches short courses in creative writing. Shauna holds an MBA from Marquette University and an MFA from the University of British Columbia. We Are Not in Pakistan: Stories was published by Goose Lane Editions in 2007. Shauna’s third novel, The Selector of Souls, was published by Knopf Canada in September 2012. Reviews, reading schedule, and interviews at: www.ShaunaSinghBaldwin.com.

Reviews for Milwaukee Noir

[bradkautz · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Milwaukee Noir is either the 9th or 10th book I've read in Ashakic Books Noir series, and it easily the second best of those I've experienced. First of all, the fourteen stories within the collection are almost all excellent. Suspenseful, with plausible but unexpected turns of their plots. And second, (Disclaimer warning!) Milwaukee is my hometown and each author did an excellent job of capturing within their story something of the place where I grew up. So take up and read, especially if you have a connection with Milwaukee.

[mike1990-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

As with all of Akashic's Noir Series anthologies, Milwaukee Noir is hit and miss. I do believe out of the 3 Noir books I've read, this is one was the most consistent. I'm not sure if it's because Milwaukee is kind of in the region of the country I live in, or not, but it's possible. These stories are so easy to read and picture them as a black and white film

[diana.hauser · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

MILWAUKEE NOIR edited by Tim Hennessey is Akashic Books latest anthology in its very prolific, very popular Noir series.I have read and enjoyed many of the titles in this series. A familiar layout makes for ease of reading. There is a very dark, sepia-colored cover; and a map (I love the map) of areas/neighborhoods where the various stories take place. (In MILWAUKEE NOIR we are in West Allis, Whitefish Bay, Ogden Avenue, and Cambridge Hills to name a few.) There is a Table of Contents which lists the stories, authors and locations. MILWAUKEE NOIR contains an Introduction, “Disturbing Reverberations” by Tim Hennessey; three Parts - Schlemiels & Schlimazels; Sweet Misery Blues and What Made Milwaukee Famous and 14 stories by:Valerie Laken - Matthew J. Prigge - Reed Farrel Coleman - Jennifer Morales - Vida Cross - Jane Hamilton - Frank Wheeler Jr. - Derrick Harriell - Christi Clancy - Shauna Singh Baldwin - Larry Watson - James E. Causey - Nick Petrie - Mary Thorson.There is also About the Contributors which contains short bios of the authors.The Introduction sets the tone of the book and often contains facts and history about the city where we are residing. I like the line of Mr. Hennessey’s about the problem facing Midwesterners, “How do you move into the future and hold onto what you love about the past?”The writing is dark, very dark, gritty and bleak - noir at its finest.The characters include teenage sewer tunnel thieves to the Princess Theater’s (specializing in adult entertainment) manager to the night clerk at the Whitcomb Hotel.The plots are just as eclectic.Our editor, Tim Hennessey says, “The crime/noir genre at its best can be one of the purest forms of social commentary.”My favorite quote is from Frank Wheeler Jr.’s “Transit Complaint Box”, “The sad thing about paying attention to history is you know what’s going to happen, and you’re powerless to stop it.”From the gritty writing to the sleazy, cynical characters and plots, MILWAUKEE NOIR is a treasure chest for the noir aficionado.

[thosgpetri · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

It is fun reading about a place you know thru experience, but I didn't know this Milwaukee. At least not the Milwaukee in this book. Yes, the places and street names were familiar and, people in Milwaukee misbehave as they do in other places. But I never felt as involved with the problem people and the problems they have, as I did reading this book. The real life drama of Milwaukeeans have become a little more personal with these stories. The stories ring true and describes the area and its' people as they are. Well worth reading, good stories with the taste of reality in them.

[bayleaf_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The Akashic Noir series is my favorite collection of noir fiction and I've been fortunate enough to have read many of these books. I now count Milwaukee Noir as one of my favorites. There's not a disappointing story in those that editor Tim Hennessy has put together. Milwaukee Noir's stories have a certain flavor that rings true, a Midwestern city, founded and formed by immigrants, a community with a high crime rate and rising poverty level, peopled with characters who cling to their town no matter what the circumstances as Milwaukee clings to the shores of Lake Michigan.

[pomo58 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Milwaukee Noir, edited by Tim Hennessy, is part of Akashic's Noir series. I am fairly new to the series, this is maybe my third volume, but I am loving them so far.First is a map of the city, with the neighborhoods highlighted in the collection marked. While the map probably isn't absolutely necessary I do really like having it. It gives a nice geographical grounding that simply saying "Milwaukee" doesn't do. I have visited the city several times, while stationed at Great Lakes years ago, so the map had me trying to figure out where I had been.In both this volume and the series as a whole the concept of what is noir is left fairly open. The writers can make it about crime or they can make it just plain old dark and oppressive. Atmosphere is key and the writers all tell compelling stories. Like any collection, there are ones I like more and ones I like less but all in all this is a strong collection of short stories, period. They also happen to be of the same genre.Social commentary is a big part of noir fiction and this volume illustrates some of the issues we face in society. The perspectives are likely different from the reader's, they were for me, even on topics I might have given thought to. So on top of being entertaining (well, as entertaining as dark literature can be) the stories are also thought provoking.I highly recommend this to readers of short stories, fans of noir or crime stories, and of course anyone familiar with Milwaukee. Nothing makes a book more compelling than knowing the locations mentioned throughout. I'm not familiar enough to be part of that third group, but the first two are definitely me.Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via LibraryThing Early Reviewers.

[john.cooper · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Essential reading for any literary-minded resident (or former resident) of Milwaukee, one of America's most overlooked cities. "Noir" here covers the seedy, the squalid, and the somewhat mysterious, not just the hard-boiled and the violent. And Milwaukee, with its crumbling industrial infrastructure and its persistent poverty, provides a lot of material for such a focus, despite the creative startups and the truly impressive little restaurants.The quality of the writing is very good, and the pleasure of a recognizable setting that is not Los Angeles or New York City is not to be underestimated.

[ann_louise_7 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Can't wait to dig into the newest volume of Akashic Books Noir series, especially since this one is set in my hometown. Of course, as a noir-themed series, the portrait of Milwaukee will be a bit darker than the reality. But like the "it looks like the Hoan Bridge but it isn't" cover, maybe appearances will be deceiving.(From the map, it looks like none of the authors set a story in the Industrial Valley or Jones Island. Missed opportunities!)

[lindapanzo · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

As usual with these noir books, the stories are uneven. Some good, some not so much. Again, as usual, I couldn't bring myself to finish it. It may be me and not the series but I've found this often to be the case with these. I think I need to stay away.